title: Thiopental modification of ischemic spinal cord injury in the dog.
abstract: Spinal cord ischemia was produced in male mongrel dogs by permanent occlusion of the infrarenal aorta. All animals were anesthetized with a mixture of nitrous oxide and 1.5% halothane. Group 1 animals were the controls. Group 2 animals were pretreated, 30 minutes prior to aortic occlusion, with sodium thiopental, 20 mg per kilogram of body weight, over 5 minutes, followed by an infusion of 10 mg/kg/hr for 2 1/2 hours. Groups 3 animals received the identical dose of sodium thiopental and, in addition, received mannitol, 1 gm/kg, and methylprednisolone 1 mg/kg. There were no differences in hemodynamic data or arterial blood gases among the groups, except that the thiopental bolus caused a transient reduction in mean arterial pressure. Ninety percent of Group 1 animals were paraplegic, while only 30% of Group 2 and 40% of Group 2 animals were paraplegic. The difference in the incidence of paraplegia in Groups 2 and 3 compared with Group 1 was statistically significant (p less than 0.05). Therefore, thiopental significantly decreased the incidence of paraplegia, while methylprednisolone and mannitol did not enhance its protective effect.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001012:Aorta, Abdominal / Q000601:surgery; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004285:Dogs; D007511:Ischemia / Q000188:drug therapy*; D008026:Ligation; D008297:Male; D008353:Mannitol / Q000008:administration & dosage; D008775:Methylprednisolone / Q000008:administration & dosage; D010264:Paraplegia / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000517:prevention & control; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000098:blood supply*; D013874:Thiopental / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D008353:Mannitol; D013874:Thiopental; D008775:Methylprednisolone